For medical testing and other purposes, it is frequently desirable to obtain a sample of blood from a subject. A variety of methods for releasing blood from a subject are known in the art. One common method for releasing blood is a fingerstick. Fingersticks are generally simple to perform and relatively painless. However, typically, only a small volume of blood is obtained from a fingerstick, thus limiting the number and type of tests that may be performed with blood obtained from a fingerstick. Another common method for releasing blood is a venous draw with a needle. While needle-based venous draws can release a large volume of blood from a subject, needle-based venous draws require a skilled technician to perform, are relatively painful, and frequently cause may cause anxiety in a subject.
Accordingly, improvements in methods for obtaining blood from a subject are desired.